The CEO of Stellantis wants European regulators to pay him for doing business in Europe. That's the pitch. Build cars here and we'll cut you a check.
Chinese carmakers figured out how to manufacture vehicles cheaper and ship them across an ocean for less than it costs Stellantis to operate a factory in Turin. This is somehow a regulatory problem requiring incentive structures rather than a management problem requiring cost controls.
Stellantis owns fourteen car brands you forgot existed. Dodge. Alfa Romeo. Peugeot. Maserati. Chrysler. They build cars in seventeen countries and still can't compete with a company that started making passenger vehicles in 2003. The solution is obviously subsidies.
European auto executives spent two decades lobbying for free trade agreements and open markets. They called it progress. They gave speeches at Davos. Now BYD shows up with an electric sedan that costs thirty percent less and suddenly the invisible hand needs a wrist brace.
Retail traders will read this headline and think it's bullish for European auto stocks. They'll buy call options on Stellantis because the CEO said something. The CEO said he needs help. That's what urging regulators for incentives means. It means the business model doesn't work without government assistance.
The technical setup doesn't care. Chinese EV manufacturers keep gaining market share. Stellantis keeps asking for handouts. The chart keeps making lower highs. But sure, load up on January calls because the CEO made a statement.
Competitors are eating your lunch so you beg bureaucrats for meal vouchers. That's the strategy. That's what we're calling leadership now.
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